(1) Field of the Invention
For example, in a weighing apparatus which includes a mass spectrometer such as an electromagnetic equilibrium system electronic balance, as one of the components, and in which another device such as a PC or a printer for outputting measurement results is connected to the electronic balance, it has been known that variations in environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, and vibration in an installation site of the electronic balance have effects on a measurement sensitivity, a zero-point (an unloaded weighed value), and a span value (a difference between a weighed value at the time of weighing a load with an already-known mass and the zero-point), that results in a factor preventing high-accuracy measurement. In particular, in an analytical electronic balance whose accuracy of reading a weighed value (minimum display) is 0.1 mg or less, and moreover, in a microelectronic balance whose accuracy of reading a weighed value is 0.1 .mu.g or less, the effect on a measurement result (weighed value) which a weighing error caused by variations in environmental conditions is extremely large.
(2) Description of Related Art
Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application No. S62-280624 discloses a weighing apparatus including a function that, in order to reduce errors by variations in environmental conditions, so as to approximate a weighed value to a true value, environmental factors (temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, vibration, and the like) having effects on weighing are recorded (undergoes monitoring), and environmental measurement data obtained from the record are used as correction values at the time of calibration (see page 1 and the claims). Japanese Published Unexamined Patent Application No. 2007-139768 discloses a weighing apparatus that evaluates whether or not the recorded environmental measurement data are within the allowable values for bringing out the fundamental performance of the weighing apparatus, and when the data are greater than or equal to the allowable values, that effect is displayed so as to urge a user to correct the values (see paragraphs [0046], and [0049] to [0053], and FIGS. 2 to 5).